GOP Gubernatorial Candidates’ Show How They Would Continue to Fail Arizona on Education

GOP Gubernatorial Candidates’ Show How They Would Continue to Fail Arizona on Education

PHOENIX – Secretary of State and gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs called out Republican candidates for governor Wednesday as they failed to address Arizona’s bottom-of-the-barrel ranking in education.

Republican frontrunner for governor Kari Lake and her trailing opponent Karrin Taylor Robson demonstrated they are out of touch with what Arizona’s families need and have no realistic vision for a brighter education future for all children.

But Hobbs sees fixing our crumbling schools as one of her top priorities for a better Arizona. Rather than promoting measures to divert funding out of public schools to enrich private institutions – which Arizonans resoundingly voted against in 2018 – Hobbs will ensure taxpayer dollars are being used in the most efficient way possible and prioritize putting more dollars directly in classrooms and promote training students for good-paying jobs in Arizona’s growing STEM sector.

“Every single Arizonan deserves access to quality public education, no matter where they live in our state,” Hobbs said. “Improving our education system means addressing the needs of students, parents and teachers, not a select few. Our state needs a real plan to make sure we have the resources to educate the next generation of leaders and innovators right here in Arizona.

Hobbs’ two sisters are teachers, and she has seen the reality first hand of Arizona’s broken schools. A Hobbs administration will work with teachers to make sure they have the resources and the support they need to provide the best education possible for Arizona’s students.

Lake

• Last November, Lake proposed on KNST AM790 an idea to put cameras in classrooms to monitor teachers’ curriculum, video from which would be accessible to parents upon request: “I like the idea of putting accountability back in the classroom. The teachers’ union, they fought tooth and nail to get body cameras on police … I want to see these same type of accountability measures in schools. Put cameras in the classroom … if the police must have this kind of accountability, our schools should as well.”

• In February, Lake tweeted in favor of state GOP lawmakers who voted against a bill that would head off a billion dollars in education funding cuts: “Take note! Vote for the names in RED on this list.  Standing up for parents rights. Standing up for our children. Showing backbone!”

• In her official education plan, Lake praises the Empowerment Scholarship Accounts voucher program.

Robson

• Spoke out in favor of expanding vouchers a prior version of which Arizona voters resoundingly opposed four years prior. “AZ has been a school choice leader for decades. #HB2853 will expand opportunity for every student & vault our state to the front of the educational freedom movement. As Governor, I look forward to build upon this legislation for years to come,” Robson tweeted.